1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an exercise supporting device, an exercise supporting method and an exercise supporting program. Specifically, the present invention relates to an exercise supporting device, an exercise supporting method and an exercise supporting program applicable to ascertainment and improvement of the status of exercise motion by a user during a game, training, etc.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, because of rising health consciousness, more and more people are performing daily exercises, such as running, walking and cycling, to maintain their wellness or improve their health condition. In addition, an increasing number of people are aiming to participate in a race such as a marathon race through these daily exercises. These people aiming to participate in a race have an objective of achieving a successful record in the race, and therefore are very conscious of and interested in efficient and effective training methods.
Currently, various devices to satisfy these demands are commercially available. For example, as a tool for runners, a running watch capable of measuring times such as a lap time and a split time has been known. Also, a running watch capable of measuring, in addition to times, a run distance and a speed (a pace) by using a GPS (Global Positioning System) has been known. In any of these devices, a measurement result until a point of time is displayed.
Regarding a device (system) including the function described above, an example is described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (Kokai) Publication No. 2010-264246, in which various sensors such as a heart rate meter, an accelerometer, and a GPS receiver are worn by a user so as to detect various performance parameters such as a heart rate, a distance, a speed, a footstep count, and consumed calories and to provide these parameters to the user as information at a current point of time. Also, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (Kokai) Publication No. 2010-264246 describes a monitoring system for instructing the user to perform a predetermined training motion according to the detected performance parameters (the heart rate and the speed) at the current point of time based on a training routine set in advance.
During a marathon race or training such as running, even when running at the same pace as usual, the runner may be, for example, unconsciously extending a stride (a footstep width) to keep this running pace. In this case, overloading occurs in the stride, which may lead to excessive physical consumption and, as a result, accumulated fatigue that causes a decrease in pace in the latter half of the race or training.
Regarding this, in the above-described device or the method disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (Kokai) Publication No. 2010-264246, because the user (a runner) can only know the status of his or her own exercise motion from time information related to speeds at the time of running, such as a lap time, a split time, and a pace, a factor (a problematic point) causing a decrease in pace cannot be found, and a slowdown in the latter half of a race or training is difficult to be mitigated.